1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a park-lock assembly for unlocking and locking a key in an ignition switch when a transmission is in a park and non-park position.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Park-lock systems have been used to ensure that a vehicle is in park before a driver removes the key from the ignition switch and leaves the vehicle. To this end, prior art transmission shifting devices have incorporated mechanical linkages to interconnect the shifter assembly and the ignition switch. One end of the mechanical linkage is connected to the shifter assembly and an opposite end is connected to the ignition switch. When the shifter assembly is moved into park, the drifter assembly end moves thereby moving the ignition switch end which coacts with the ignition switch to release the key therefrom. When the shifter assembly is moved out of park, the mechanical linkage coacts with the ignition switch to retain the key therein.
As known in the art, console shifter assemblies have utilized shifters that have a pawl that is disposed within a gate defining a shift pattern. Prior art park-lock systems have utilized a cam-like follower that rotates about a pivot to coact with the pawl and move the mechanical linkage. One such device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,197,356 to Kobayashi et al. issued Mar. 30, 1993. The Kobayashi cam-like follower, and similar prior art rotating followers, utilizes many moving parts that interact with one another and create hysteresis in the cable, which causes undesired park-lock assembly operation. Therefore, what is needed is a park-lock follower with a simplified design that provides improved operation.